There is a problem out in the sticks; plenty of jobs yet not enough skilled personnel to fill them. Whilst the recent government statistics show that unemployment for the under 24s is rising rapidly there are certain pockets of the country that have a shortage of specific skill sets; in particular, those conversant in different aspects of the advertising and marketing world.
And one company that had been finding it tough to find the right high calibre of professionally trained staff has managed to find a solution in dramatic fashion - by asking commuters to reconsider their career choice of commuting to London each day and replace it with an equally or even more fulfilling career working locally.
dnx, an award winning marketing agency, based in Shere in Surrey, placed large format 48 sheet posters at mainline rail stations like Guildford, with copy that questions the sanity of those commuting to London each day rather than choosing to work closer to home.
Titled 'Village needs idiots' the poster plays on the nuance of 'who is the idiot?', the person that commutes long distance everyday or the common held belief that every village has one.
Either way the poster campaign has a strong message; that there are very good, well paid, professional jobs still to be had and that not all is doom and gloom on the employment front.
Indeed Drew Nicholson, who is joint managing director of dnx says: "We really do need a whole array of talented people from account handlers to web designers, developers to creatives.
"Our order books are full and we are looking to fill a number of places immediately.
Over the last year we have taken on over 25 people and we require a further 20% on top of this.
“The great news is that the campaign is working! We have already recruited two people directly from the poster.”
Drew who worked in some of the largest advertising agencies in London for nearly 20 years firmly believes that creative talent no longer needs to be routed in Soho or Shoreditch. These were traditionally the hotbed locations for creatives, but as he says 'times have changed'.
With the rise of the internet, conference calling via skype and other mediums, creative talent can share their ideas and concepts without having to continuously meet face-to-face.
